An Apple A Day

My favorite apple, the Red Rome.  I can find it at only one store nowadays.  They have replaced them with all different and new strains of apple.  They told me people want the newest ones.  Well, I want the old ones. They even have a grape scented one which does smell like grape.  Guess it is good for diversity, but I want my Red Rome back.

This tableau was a joke.  If you are old enough, you remember your grannie's Tupperware.  Don't know if it was sold anywhere besides the US, but every household had Tupperware.

I made this necklace to wear to my first visit with the cardiologist yesterday.  My sister went with me and said I couldn't wear that.  Then she dared me to.  I decided not to in case the doctor wasn't of a certain age as he wouldn't get the joke.

Well, he wasn't - a mere babe, young enough to be my child.  But, he made me feel better and scheduled a couple of tests.  Just waiting for the insurance to approve them. What I didn't tell you before, is I am at high risk for heart disease.  I have Syndrome X and am diabetic, etc.  Plus, one of my brothers had sudden cardiac death at age 45.  Another had a heart attack last month at age 49 and had stents put in.  My sister had a silent heart attack at 36 and has tachycardia.  I don't know all the abbreviations and such, but the family history is there.

Here is what was in the little tupperware bowl.  Aspirin. I thought it was funny, but now I find out that the little bowl was for pills.  Couple of things to pass on.  He told me not to take the whole 325 mg. aspirin, but a baby aspirin.  And,  the recent studies about Prilosec and heart disease in older patients is a misnomer as they still prescribe it for their patients to deal with the effects of their heart meds.  I was glad to hear that as I have been taking it for years and can't go without it.

To Know Or Not To Know

Oh good grief!  I have always prided myself in the knowledge of medicine: I used to read medical books for fun, and in fact,  early on, wanted to be an internist. Anyway, cut to the chase.  Do you want to know the answers to medical questions regarding your health?  The queen of anxiety ought to know better.

In regard to my recent heart referral, I thought maybe I should know a little of what's going on in there.  Wrong. The reader in the posts' picture should have her eyes open wide after reading the page; bugged out as mine were last night.

I decided to look up entropy last night and watched a Khan Academy video on the subject.  Too technical though I got the disorder part spiraling into chaos (as I did also after reading all that stuff.)  So, next, I typed in entropy in relation to heart disease which took me to a site with scientific articles I think must have been for the professionals.  Still too much information so I hit on PVC's, which I have, and OMG.  They can lead to cardiomyopathy (no one ever said a word about that), then, I clicked on diabetic cardiomyopathy and shit.....  

I have decided I am of the ilk that doesn't want to know what is going on down in that chaotic closed environment.  Jeez.  It's enough to give me a heart attack.

Heartbroken

I have posted before that you have to drag me kicking and screaming to the doctor.  Infantile behavior I know.  I do the necessary checkups and tests, and I take all my medications religiously, but I don't like to.

After the fall, filled with too much stress; my husband's chronic/serious illnesses and hospitalizations while moving from one house to another back to back, then the holidays and just life, I have neglected some health issues.

That pain, in my back between my shoulder blades radiating around my side, was due to packing and  moving, carrying around bales of hay and feed bags.  At least that is what I wanted it to be.  And that was back in October.  Then just the feeling that something isn't ticking like it's supposed to; something just doesn't seem right.  Vague symptoms to sweep under the rug with crossed fingers.

So, I finally got tired of worrying about it (remember I have an anxiety disorder so worrying is my middle name and impossible for me not to.)  I have some time this week and went to see my internist yesterday.  She did an EKG and said she was concerned and was referring me to a cardiologist in the city at the Heart Institute.  She said they will be doing lots of tests.  Just the thought of it all is going to give me a heart attack.

I will share the journey with you, just so you won't wait if you are having symptoms, and February, coincidentally, is Heart Health month.  Childlike, I am sure nothing is wrong and hoping that all of this is just in my head and due to stress.  I hate having to go through it all, but it could be worse.  My family still needs me and would be heartbroken. And, like I said, I ain't going gently...